Toronto’s first-ever Truly Flavour Face Off will take place on Thursday, June 22, a space on Queen West will transform into , at which four local, up-and-coming artists will showcase their skills on stage, in real time. created by Truly Hard Seltzer, and presented in collaboration with Secret Walls, art battle veterans who’ve hosted thousands of these all around the world.

 

The art battle will feature two teams of two artists, comprised of Curtia Wright, a Scarborough-born, Toronto-based multi-disciplinary fine art artist, mural artist and arts educator; Andre Kan, a Toronto-based painter whose murals can be seen throughout Canada, the U.S., London, Greece, Spain and Hungary; Katrina Canedo, a Filipino-Canadian artist, live painter and muralist; and Rei “M E D Ē I O” Misiri, an Albanian-born, Toronto-based calligraphy artist. And they’ll have just 90 minutes to create their collaborative masterpieces in front of a live audience that are meant to inspire others to bring their own flavour into the world.

The twist? They’ll be using Truly Colours – paint made from the fruit in Truly’s unique flavours – to create their eye-catching pieces. Truly Colours was developed in partnership with the Toronto Ink Company and is a limited-edition line of acrylic paints coloured from the natural pigments found in Truly’s flavours – specifically berries, cherries, pineapples and mangoes. The fruits were boiled, freeze-dried, liquified, distilled and transformed into vibrant, natural paints.

The event is an initiative of the Truly Make Space Project, which aims to create opportunities for emerging and underrepresented voices of Canadian creatives by making space to have their work experienced, appreciated, and enjoyed.  ​In 2021, Truly ran research to uncover the biggest barriers facing Canadian creatives today, with a focus on traditionally underrepresented voices. We learned that only 1 in 3 creatives are optimistic about their future in Canada. And that a key barrier to opportunity is access to affordable space. In fact, 68% of Canadian creatives say it’s challenging to find space to showcase their work.

The Truly Flavour Face Off is taking place on June 22, from 7 – 11 p.m. at 1153 Queen Street West – Tickets

7:00 PM

Doors Open

8:00 PM

Kick Off & Artist Introductions

8:30 PM

Live Paint Battle

10:00 PM

Closing Remarks + DJ Set

Witness the creative process unfold on stage. Check out the Eventbrite page here. The event will also feature interactive installations, incredible music and a Truly bar serving up unique flavours of Truly Hard Seltzer that aren’t otherwise available in Ontario. In addition to being used by the Truly Flavour Face Off artists, up to 80 sets of Truly Colours paint, along with a monetary donation, will also be provided to support up-and-coming artists through the Vancouver Visual Arts Foundation, a Vancouver-based nonprofit whose mission is to “create advantageous opportunities by uniting people of diverse backgrounds and cultures through the power of art”. And in July, a gallery of all works created using Truly Colours will be available at trulyhardseltzer.ca/makespaceproject.

 

 

 

About the Author

Bryen Dunn is a freelance journalist with a focus on travel, lifestyle, entertainment and hospitality. He has an extensive portfolio of celebrity interviews with musicians, actors and other public personalities. He enjoys discovering delicious eats, tasting spirited treats, and being mesmerized by musical beats.